Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Calgary and Kingston, Jamaica

For one person, living is cheaper in Kingston: $1,693 a month against $2,297 in Calgary, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Calgary
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Calgary Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Kingston
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Kingston Living Index

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Calgary

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,297

/mo nomad

Kingston

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,693

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Calgary and in Kingston

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Calgary and in Kingston actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,297 in Calgary versus $1,693 in Kingston.

Calgary $2,297
Kingston $1,693

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,378 in Calgary versus $2,846 in Kingston.

Calgary $3,378
Kingston $2,846

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,459 in Calgary versus $3,998 in Kingston.

Calgary $4,459
Kingston $3,998

Living in Calgary is roughly 36% more expensive than in Kingston, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Calgary 70% above, Kingston 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 CA$25.23

$15.53 JMD 2,451

15.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.9 CA$96.9

$75.7 JMD 11.9K

-9.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.94 CA$15.38

$8.06 JMD 1,271

35.73%

Cappuccino

$3.70 CA$5.21

$5.26 JMD 830

-29.66%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 CA$2.91

$1.14 JMD 180

81.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 CA$2.87

$0.70 JMD 111

191.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 CA$8.08

$2.05 JMD 324

180.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 CA$8.02

$3.10 JMD 490

83.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.98 CA$2.78

$4.04 JMD 638

-50.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.65 CA$3.72

$3.68 JMD 580

-27.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.84 CA$8.21

$1.56 JMD 246

274.36%

Eggs

$3.81 CA$5.36

$3.59 JMD 567

6.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.81 CA$15.20

$11.36 JMD 1,793

-4.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.02 CA$15.50

$6.14 JMD 969

79.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.87 CA$25.14

$10.22 JMD 1,613

74.85%

Apples (1kg)

$4.88 CA$6.87

$6.21 JMD 981

-21.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 CA$2.04

$3.86 JMD 609

-62.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.15 CA$5.84

$7.13 JMD 1,125

-41.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 CA$5.61

$2.96 JMD 466

34.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.93 CA$4.12

$3.20 JMD 505

-8.44%

Onion (1kg)

$3.02 CA$4.25

$2.72 JMD 429

11.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.67 CA$3.75

$3.12 JMD 492

-14.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 CA$2.21

$1.50 JMD 236

4.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.11 CA$19.84

$9.25 JMD 1,460

52.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.45 CA$21.73

$11.30 JMD 1,784

36.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 CA$3.52

$2.87 JMD 453

-12.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 CA$4.47

$3.93 JMD 621

-19.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.85 CA$4.00

$0.61 JMD 95.8

367.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.2 CA$127

$38.17 JMD 6,023

136.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 CA$4.45

$2.40 JMD 378

31.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.41 CA$1.98

$3.21 JMD 507

-56.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.46 CA$38.62

$6.27 JMD 990

337.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 CA$1.66

$1.47 JMD 232

-19.73%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.9K CA$39.2K

$44.3K JMD 7.0M

-37.16%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.1K CA$29.6K

$32.9K JMD 5.2M

-35.93%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$182 CA$256

$171 JMD 27.0K

6.36%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$36.01 CA$50.7

$29.11 JMD 4,593

23.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.80 CA$68.6

$53.8 JMD 8,491

-9.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.78 CA$68.6

$61.7 JMD 9,739

-20.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.15 CA$25.53

$17.49 JMD 2,760

3.77%

Cinema Ticket

$14.52 CA$20.42

$13.26 JMD 2,092

9.50%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$542 CA$762

$357 JMD 56.3K

51.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.2K CA$29.8K

$17.4K JMD 2.7M

21.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 CA$83.1

$23.44 JMD 3,699

152.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.34 CA$59.5

$30.98 JMD 4,889

36.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.2 CA$132

$78.3 JMD 12.3K

20.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 CA$153

$103 JMD 16.3K

5.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,214 CA$1,707

$951 JMD 150.0K

27.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 CA$1,457

$569 JMD 89.8K

82.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,045 CA$2,876

$2,099 JMD 331.1K

-2.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,655 CA$2,327

$1,418 JMD 223.8K

16.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,653 CA$5,137

$2,921 JMD 460.9K

25.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,183 CA$4,476

$2,015 JMD 318.0K

57.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,219 CA$4,526

$726 JMD 114.6K

343.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.43

9.45

-53.12%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Calgary: November 2, 2026

Last update for Kingston: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Calgary

$1K 45.1%

Kingston

$569 33.6% 45.1% $467

Groceries & Markets

Calgary

$390 17%

Kingston

$381 22.5% 2.2% $8.6

Eating Out

Calgary

$277 12.1%

Kingston

$235 13.9% 15.1% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Calgary

$267 11.6%

Kingston

$254 15% 4.8% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Calgary

$137 6%

Kingston

$106 6.3% 22.4% $31

Getting Around

Calgary

$112 4.9%

Kingston

$59 3.5% 47.2% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Calgary

$78 3.4%

Kingston

$88 5.2% 13.4% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,214 in Calgary and $951 in Kingston. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Calgary pays about 4.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $69 in Calgary vs $76 in Kingston. Groceries flip the comparison at $390 vs $381, with Kingston cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Calgary

🇯🇲 Kingston

🕒 Local time

06:51 6:51 AM

07:51 7:51 AM

1 h ahead of Calgary

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,267,344

660,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.711 USD

1 CAD = 0.633 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.711 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 CAD (1 CAD = 0.633 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.64 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Calgary Kingston 4,920 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Calgary
Kingston

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Calgary vs Kingston: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kingston is about 26% cheaper overall, especially in transport, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Calgary is about 4.4 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,214 in Calgary versus $951 in Kingston. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $542 in Calgary versus $357 in Kingston. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Calgary – a meal for two runs $69 versus $76 in Kingston. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,693 in Kingston versus $2,297 in Calgary, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kingston but tight or insufficient in Calgary. The gap between the two cities makes Kingston the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Kingston wins on affordability, Calgary on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.